| The Local Community Conservation (LCC)
Program was developed to both involve the public and to obtain island wide
data on sea turtle activity. With the success of St. Croix's sea turtle
conservation projects, sea turtles have been on the increase. With
increasing sea turtle populations around the island, WIMARCS partnered with
the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources (VIDPNR) in
2004 to begin a USVI sea turtle beach monitoring project.
This project, was designed to involve the local
community in monitoring “trends in nesting activity by means of standardized
surveys” and to identify important nesting beaches. The Virgin Islands
are an extremely important nesting area for green, hawksbill, and
leatherback turtles. To reach our goals, we will begin with St. Croix
and start
working with other islands as interest gains. Our initial objectives
are to:
- Patrol each of the identified St. Croix beaches
at least once a week from February 1st through December 15th
- Identify the species and result of each turtle
activity
- Train local personnel to patrol and properly
identify species and turtle activities
- Maintain involvement and cooperation from all
agencies and organizations involved in the project
- Create a single database showing turtle
activities around the island.
- Create a final report, including resource
management recommendations
If your community has sea
turtle activity and is interested in implementing a LCC, please email
steve.garner@wimarcs.org for
an application.
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